


Centerfold Adjacent

by EnsignDisaster



Category: Good Girls (TV)
Genre: F/M, Flirting, Fluff, Mild Language, Mild Sexual Content, Sexual Tension
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-17
Updated: 2019-11-30
Packaged: 2020-12-21 00:10:56
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,641
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21065516
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EnsignDisaster/pseuds/EnsignDisaster
Summary: Rio finds something extremely interesting at a yard sale that gives him a clue that maybe Elizabeth might not have always been such a good girl.





	1. Rio's Day Off

Having a day off was a luxury (serious once in a blue moon) opportunity for Rio and sure sometimes he got half days where in the morning he’d drive to the warehouse of the month or to the various business’ to boss others around and by the afternoon hustle Marcus to baseball or soccer or whatever activity his ex had signed their son up for on the notion that it’ll look good on college apps, kid’s barely six but apparently has already gotta worry about the ivy league which baffles Rio.

But today was a true and honest day off, a full 24 hours to do whatever Rio wanted. His men were over seeing things, Marcus' having a play date with friends before being dropped off at his abuela’s house, and Elizabeth was (hopefully) getting the drops done smoothly and kids-free, no one wanted a repeat of the damn blanket incident. 

At exactly 8 am he’s awake and hitting the gym, boxing around the ring and improving his footwork. He hadn’t had a good work out in what felt like forever and hitting the punching bag that slowly morphed into car-man’s dopey face created a deep and satisfying burn in his muscles. Both adrenaline and dopamine flowed through his body in perfect harmony.

After a good hour and a half with a quick shower it was time for a little pick me up to stave off any lethargy. His usual order of black tea with a dash of honey and (deciding he’d earned the extra calories) a blueberry scone. The coffee shop near his place was new and very hipster but he’d found himself coming back almost weekly if only for the fact that his neck tattoo was barely even glanced at. After all when the barista had Cthulhu like tentacles crawling up each of her forearms and about ten different face piercings it was difficult to stand out in the morning rush.

Then he’d hit a brick wall at around 10 and his fingers itched to type out a message to Demon or Dags or Cisco just to check in but refrained because the night before he’d warned them that unless everything was going up in flames and nine out of ten of his men were down, he wasn't to be disturbed. He still had hours to go before lunch and the thought of returning home and watching daytime tv held no appeal whatsoever even if he might catch one of Elizabeth’s commercials playing.

The ad was cheesy as hell(not flying pig cheesy) but still every time he saw it when the local news went to break it brought a smile to his face. Maybe he’d stop by the dealership and make Elizabeth’s cheeks turn a nice rosy shade of pink either from frustration at showing up unannounced or if he played his card just right something much more primal.

He’s about to make a u-turn to head in the direction of the dealership when a sign taped crookedly to a telephone pole catches his attention. In big but squished red letters like the writer overestimated the free space on the neon green poster board are the words  _ ‘GARAGE SALE!’ _

Just like that Rio is taken back over twenty-five years to when his mother used to drag him and his sisters every single Sunday after church to some garage sale or swap meet or flea market she’d read about in the penny saver looking for the best deal. 

His mother who worked two jobs to put food on the table and a roof over their heads could walk onto a person's driveway with twenty dollars and walk off with a full living room set and enough left over to buy them all vanilla ice cream cones from Dairy Queen on the way home. He’d chased his sisters around mismatched furniture with second hand toys but it’d been a good childhood, better than most in his neighborhood at least. Year later Rio liked to think that he got his negotiation skills from his mother.

So more for nostalgia’s sake rather than expecting to find something actually valuable, he follows the signs to a small cul-de-sac not too far from the main road. 

The overcrowded lawn has multitudes of boxes stuffed to the brim with clothes and toys, there's a few tables set up for the more valuable and fragile stuff with a healthy mix of people milling about. His tattoo and dark button up and jeans do earn him a few looks unlike the coffee shop but thankfully no one comments.

The old lady running the whole thing is sitting on a lawn chair wearing a long striped mumu watching everyone with eagle eyes behind coke bottle glasses and grips a wooden cane, no doubt ready to smack anyone daring to undercut her. She’s practically stage whispering to a neighbor that now that her third husband has passed it’s time to make the move down to Florida, the Michigan winters are just too brutal on her joints. His mother would have seen her as a worthy challenge but not above laying on the whole struggling single mother sob story to get a few cents off.

Gravitating to the box of dusty records Rio hopes that he can find a diamond in the rough to add to his vinyl collection, a healthy mix of jazz, blues, O.G. rap, and late 90s R&B. But much to his disappointment it’s mostly old disco albums and pop like ABBA and Lips Inc. Even a novelty Halloween record called ‘ _ Sir Skeleton’s Spookorama’  _ with corny bats, skulls, and a wannabe Vincent Price on the orange cover. It’s while he’s looking over what might be a half-decent Billie Holiday album that another man saddles up to the box full of magazines next to him and starts digging in.

Rio is an exceptionally observant guy, has to be if he wants to make it far in his line of work and not get caught up by any rivals or the feds. Last time he was caught unaware was when a certain housewife and her girls tried to get him locked up and sure that’s in the past but he’s certain she’ll stir up more trouble soon enough. 

Being so observant also comes with the downside of picking up on annoying sounds and not being able to brush them off. Once the a/c in his place broke down and would make a totally random but low toned clicking noise that nearly drove him up the wall but Marcus stayed blissfully and annoyingly unaware. He’d had to call in a HVAC guy and pay extra out of pocket rather than wait for the super to schedule the repair.

So when the man next to Rio begins to loudly breath through his mouth in an almost wheezy fashion it causes his jaw to twitch immediately. Glancing out of the corner of his eye, Rio can see that the other guy has taken off the top layer of magazines (about five or six car hobby mags mostly auto) to get to the good stuff.

_ ‘And it is very much good stuff’ _ Rio thinks raising an eyebrow as the mouth breather flips through Playboy’s, Hustlers, and other fair that used to be stashed under Rio’s mattress so his mom wouldn’t find it and beat his ass. 

He’d thrown it all away after getting his first legit girlfriend and deeming himself ‘too mature’ at the ripe old age of sixteen. That relationship had lasted all of three months and she was more of a hazy memory at this point, after it was over and done with he’d semi-mourned his lost collection. But in the end he had grown up or at least figured out the internet and then actual real life women, although Elizabeth was making him question if he understood women at all.

“They always stash the dirty mags under the regular stuff...if they don’t throw them away immediately.” The stranger notices his questioning look and Rio’s shoulders tense because he so does not want this weirdo to feel any type of comradery with him. “I-I’m really a collector of these more than anything, the articles are really good too.”

“Mmmhmm sure man.” Rio’s desperate for this conversation to end but the man launches into an almost rehearsed speech, going on and on about modern ideas of propriety, western prudishness and how in Japan, everything is so much more different and accepting. Mouth breather rambles and flicks through the porno mags putting them into two piles, obviously rejects and keepers.

The old lady is trying to get a rather rotund trucker to buy her lawnmower so Rio can’t just buy the Holiday and split but he’s reaching the end of his patience. He’s just about to tell the guy to fuck off when something red flashes in the other mans hands. And really it’d be so easy to ignore it but the brief glimpse sticks with him.

“Hey lemme have that one.” Rio deliberately thickens his accent to leave no room for argument because it ain’t a question and holds out his hand.

“Oh uh sure, this one’s a little too pedestrian for my taste it’s more for the romantic crowd.” He gives Rio a once over and shakes his head like he doesn’t quite believe it. But wheezy hands over the magazine without another word and walks off with his choices, the top one’s cover is full of chains and whips and leather.

The little old lady is free now so Rio quickly walks over with his items, the album completely covering the magazine like he’s some embarrassed teen buying condoms for the first time. When the old lady sees what Rio wants she does raise a thin over plucked eyebrow but only informs him that it’ll be five bucks for both.

Rio hands over the cash and hustles it back to his car, knowing that if his ma were dead she’d be spinning in her grave at the notion that he didn’t even attempt to haggle. 

He could just hear her nagging now, _ “Eyy Mijo! that dusty old record is barely worth a dollar and I’m sure it’s covered in scratches. Also how am I going to show my face in church with my son out buying that kind of literature? Madre de Dios Christopher!” _

He pushes his mother to some very dark corner of his mind and sits for a while in the stillness of his car, head against the leather headrest breathing in and out. His mood isn’t helped by the off handed comment from the mouth breather about Rio not looking like the ‘romantic-type’ and sure his last sexual encounter was with a married woman in a bar bathroom while said woman’s clueless husband was outside. But he could be romantic damn it!

Conjuring up images of him being romantic though in some way made the woman accepting those romantic gestures Elizabeth which caused a feeling in his gut Rio wasn’t too keen on exploring. 

_ Taking Elizabeth on an actual dinner date. _

_ Going for a long sunset drive around the lake...with Elizabeth. _

_ Sipping bourbon in a steaming hot bath with her back resting against his front, the crown of her soft hair brushing his chin. _

Instead he shifts focus to the not so innocent reading material in his passenger seat. The cover (the title is some cheesy french saying) boasts stories and articles that give him a hint that it was published in the early 2000s. About the expanding internet era and Bush’s presidency, what a more conservative administration could mean for the erotic world and how someone could download their consciousness onto the net in the near future.

Before he can change his mind Rio begins flipping through the pages never spending more than a few seconds on each page. And he begins to understand what the other guy meant by this being more  _ romantic _ in nature. Each girl is posed in a certain type of theme and not all of them are totally nude, he sees a picnic scene, fairy tale princess set up, and something based on Cleopatra. All with done up women of every skin color and ethnicity with some having one huge picture and other’s having a series but nothing is quite right or matches what he saw.

He’s about to give up and toss the stupid rag figuring his over active imagination got the better of him when he passes the centerfold and stops.

Because it’s her but it’s also not her. The same pale skin, same curvaceous figure, and the same look in her blue eyes that's one half challenging and the other half demure. 

But Rio’d never seen her hair that deep a shade of red and even though he’s been inside her and caressed her legs particularly her thighs they’d never seemed so long with a taunt garter belt and ending in velvet heels. The tight black and scarlet bodice leaves little to the imagination while valiantly holding up her heavy breasts. Reclined against silky dark sheets she looks like a luxury few men could afford and even fewer could ever hope to touch.

He flip flops back and forth several hundred times on if it is or it isn’t his Elizabeth. His gut is telling him that  _ This. Is. Elizabeth _ the same woman who bent over the bathroom sink for him, who stole from him, and liked to argue with him oftentimes for no real good reason other than just to argue. The woman who drove him hot, crazy, and wild, like no matter how many sips he took from her spring he wouldn’t get enough...ever.

But his brain couldn’t or maybe wouldn’t put the pieces together because the mother of four who washed cash for him and then partnered with him to distribute drugs although semi-reluctantly on his part wasn’t capable of doing this. He’s pretty damn sure she’d never even gotten a speeding ticket before holding up his grocery store.

He flips to the other side and is pleasantly surprised to see more pictures are included, a total of four more spread into the margins with a short question and answer interview. He forces himself to save the photos for last and instead focuses on the text.

Another point for it actually being her is the fact that she introduces herself as Beth M but it could be a coincidence. The first few questions are corny as fuck like what her sign is or if she prefers chocolate or vanilla but it’s the second to last question that gives Rio pause.

_ Q: What would you say is your ideal man? _

_ Beth: The safe answer is to say a good man who provides for his family and comes home to me at the end of the day. The answer you’re probably looking for is that I need a bad boy who takes what he wants and offers no apologies leaving my thighs quivering and my mind a lust filled mess. But I’m just laying here wondering why I can’t have both? Not two different men but just the one enjoys both eating my lemon-raspberry cupcakes and also wants to lick the cheesecake frosting off my body. _

He has to laugh at that because wasn’t it just like Elizabeth to want the best of both worlds. Got to play happy little wifey with Deansie and Boss Bitch with Rio although maybe things weren’t so joyful in the Boland marriage after all women like Elizabeth didn’t fuck men like Rio in bar bathrooms when happily married but she was just full of surprises. Good thing Rio was too if one smashed ugly vette was a tiny indication.

He then turns his attention to the photos and it’s a big mistake. His jeans somehow feel tighter and the car’s temperature spikes a couple degrees.

The first is a top down view of her gazing up at the camera looking back up at him. Full blood red bottom lip being nibbled on while her curly locks are slayed out like a halo around her head. There’s a sliver of blue iris staring back at him and his fingers tighten on the already delicate paper.

Moving to the next photo isn’t much better, Elizabeth (or not Elizabeth) is on her stomach back arched in such a way to show off the curves of her ass held in thin lace panties. Traveling down the slope of her body draws the eye to glowing white cleavage offering the promise of heaven sent breasts. Rio’d admired them countless times with stolen glances even held their weight in his palms but still never seen them exposed, never had her naked and vulnerable beneath him. 

In a flash he slams the magazine shut and tosses it in his glove compartment. It’s too much,too much skin, too much of being a voyeur,and too much emotion. 

It’s several minutes before he can start the car and start driving down the road, out of the cul-de-sac, and toward...wherever, it doesn’t matter because it’s his day off even if it has been thrown off kilter by one woman. Never in a million years would he have thought some mild mannered suburban housewife would get under his skin like this in a totally and completely different way this time too.

If he was sensible he’d let it go, forget about the whole thing because everybody's got a past and he for damn sure knows people with much darker stuff than taking a few risque pics. Rio was one of ‘em!

Hell Elizabeth wasn’t even fully nude in any of them.

Only thing was, Rio never could find himself being sensible when it came to her. He’d have to hear the truth from the horse's mouth luckily he knows exactly where to find her.


	2. Beth's Day Off

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is Beth's day off when she gets a little surprise drop in from everyone's favorite drug dealer.

Beth’s official first day off in what felt like forever since starting work full time both at the dealership and as partner in drug distribution began with more of a whimper than a bang.

At exactly 6am she’d woken up to complete silence which she’d grown accustomed to except for her irritating alarm. On autopilot she’d showered, dressed, and done her make-up for the day. 

It’d only been when she entered the kids rooms(to leave her customary notes) that Beth remembered how Dean had planned a whole backyard camping trip at his mothers. Explaining how it would nurture the kids independence while still being completely safe the only real danger being the deer and squirrels that inhabited the small forested area behind his mother’s home and Beth had agreed.

So there were no kids to write notes for, no lunches with animal face sandwiches to make, and no shuttling from one activity to another.

For the first half hour or so Beth walked around her house, dressed in her usual blazer and slacks just wondering what to do with her time. 

Snapping out of it she’d promptly changed into denim shorts and a ratty button up to get to work on the chores she’d put off for too long.

First was the laundry and all the kids and her bedding plus all the bathroom towels, that frankly she could do in her sleep. While the washing machine and dryer were going it was time to prep the dinners for the week. When it came to feeding a family of six Beth learned early on that no matter how much a home cooked meal from scratch was the best the bone tiredness of child rearing would win every single time. So it was best to prepare ahead of time.

Monday was meatloaf with fingerling potatoes so the meatloaf was made and put in the freezer. The fingerling potatoes just needed salt, pepper, and olive oil to be roasted in the oven 30 minutes before serving.

Tuesday was taco night, that just required a marinated flank steak with tortillas that Kenny was old enough to flip in a hot skillet. Everything else was toppings and ready made mexican rice. She makes sure there’s extra of everything because it’s the night Annie’s most likely to bring Sadie over after he convinces his mother they can’t survive on microwave pizza and cheese doodles all week.

Wednesday was lasagna using the Hill family recipe which was just regular lasagna with a hit of tabasco always in a Ruby portion because for some reason Stan just could not understand when heat turned for ‘Oh that has a bite to it’ to ‘My mouth is literally on fire.’ That goes into the freezer alongside the meatloaf.

Thursday was leftover night which usually comes with its fair share of whining. Jane will suddenly hate italian food with every fiber of her small being even though she had two helpings of lasagna the night before and Danny will feed bits of his meatloaf to Buddy under the table hoping she won’t notice even when the dogs frantic wagging tail keeps hitting her shins.

Finally comes Friday...Friday is the night everyone looks forward to because Friday is roast chicken night. Chicken roasted in rosemary and sage until golden brown and crispy with a side of creamy mash potatoes and sauteed brussels sprouts coated in minced garlic and bits of bacon. No one complains at the dinner table on Friday nights.

As she’s folding the laundry and putting beds back together Beth tries to recall the last time they’d actually enjoyed a family dinner together. She feels a pang of guilt deep in her gut when she tracks the last time to several long months ago, she can imagine the kids in each of their chairs easily enough chattering away with full mouths but across from her at the other end of the table the vision smudges. Dean used to fit so easily at the head of the table but now not so much. And it’s hard to imagine the other man in her life willingly coming to roast chicken night.

Somehow she doesn’t think Rio’s a real family man ‘home by six for supper’ kinda guy.

_ ‘Honey I’m home! Cleared a cool million in counterfeit bills today and only had to cap one mofo in the face!’ _

_ ‘Oh how wonderful sweetie! Hopefully the blood stains aren’t too bad this time.’ _

It’s a sharp shooting pain radiating from her ankle that breaks her day dream. Mumbling a few choice curses and hopping on one leg reveals the culprit; either Danny or more likely Jane has left a dozen or so Legos scattered around the bathroom floor waiting for an unsuspecting victim.

So it’s on to the next task of cleaning up all the lost and wayward toys. Kenny’s room is easy as he’s getting close to the age that he’s resenting conventional toys and begging every other day for an Xbox or Playstation, usually reminding him that he’ll have to share said Xbox with his siblings shuts that idea down. Emma’s is also a piece of cake her oldest girl having inherited Beth’s tidiness and Danny just needs to be reminded that his dirty cleats need to stay in the mud room. Jane’s room on the other hand appears to have been hit by a small tornado so cleaning up the various half finished art projects and Barbies who’ve been given impromptu makeovers with safety scissor mohawks and purple marker dyed hair takes a chunk of time.

In all honesty days like this including but not limited to deep cleans, bake sales, and spring pageants used to cause Beth a lot of stress where she had everything planned out down to the minute. But that was before when she believed Dean was faithful and they were just going through a bit of a dry spell, when she didn’t have to worry if they could afford to keep the house or feed the kids, before she’d gotten involved with a gang and strong armed her way into running the dealership and using it for not so legal motives.

Before she’d slept with said gangs leader.

It doesn’t help that she’s washing a few dishes in the kitchen sink when she remembers her moment with Rio in the bar. 

The opening and closing of the back door makes her turn and the only thing stopping her from blurting out ‘speak of the devil’ is the cheshire like grin on his face.

Instead she plasters on an unimpressed look, “Sorry to disappoint you but Dean’s not here and neither are any corvettes for you to smash up.” no matter how much she wants a repeat performance.

Instead of answering her he makes his way over to the cabinet and gets a glass down and fills it water bumping her hip gently to move her out of the way to get to the faucet.

He takes a seat at the counter and sips of his water with the same smug grin on his face. It’s making her really mad, his smirk, his silence, the fact that just him being in her house is pissing her off. And frankly the most infuriating part is that it doesn’t make sense, she should be used to these unexpected drop ins. They were making money hand over fist in a very dangerous field and sure they’d had sex and even though it’d been amazing and mind blowing it’d still been just sex.

But nothing was ever  _ just _ one thing with Rio. It was never just a quick run to Canada, never just washing his fake cash, and Elizabeth knew it would never be just fifteen minutes in a bar bathroom.

“I know I stopped by the dealership and the nice lady at reception informed me that Mrs. Boland had taken a much needed day off.”

“Yes well...here I Am.” She sweeps a wet sudsy hand through the air at the clearly spotless house.

“Might need to rethink the idea of a day off ma, it’s about doing stuff you wanna do.” 

She’s about to say that this is what she wants to be doing but he continues.

“Like what I did today, hit the gym, went to a cafe, and spontaneously stopped by a garage sale.” The confession makes Beth laugh at the image of Rio getting into an intense haggling session with some blue haired biddy over a used lazy boy.

“I’m serious darlin’ even picked up some real interesting reading material.”

“Oh?” She raises an eyebrow in question as he takes a rolled magazine from his back pocket and slides it across the counter top. It’s when she sees the cover that a flood of memories comes back to her.

It’s rather surprising how fast she moves across the kitchen to the far corner putting as much distance as she can from the magazine. Rio is clearly not expecting this reaction from how his face tightens and he rises from his stool but decides not to crowd her, a first for him.

“S-sorry it’s just I haven’t...I don’t think…”She trails off in her excuses because her mind which usually has a lie waiting in the wings can’t come up with anything.

“It’s fine ma but I guess that confirms it’s actually you huh?” He watches her pick the magazine up and flip right to her exact page before coming to sit on the bar stool beside him.

“Yes...I really thought these were all in some landfill in New Jersey by now.” Beth trails her fingers over the glossy image of her younger self, a girl with few worries just a rebellious kid sister and future wedding plans. “I never told anyone I took these photos...not even Ruby.”

She looks up into his questioning brown gaze and he’s being patient for once. She’s unsure of where to begin perhaps not the borderline poverty of her childhood or how after the photos were taken she’d dyed her hair back to its original strawberry even though she’d loved the deep vivacious red just to avoid the slim chance anyone would recognize her. 

“Annie was still living at home with our mother and I was engaged to Dean.” She clocks the rocking of Rio’s jaw at the mention of her husband. “His father who owned the dealership at the time insisted he work from the ground up and it took awhile for him to sell his first car but every time I mentioned getting a part time job he resisted.”

She looks down at the girl on the page in a pose almost humorous, facing the camera and sensually biting into a decadent truffle while making a pouty face. She must have eaten almost 50 chocolates that afternoon to the point of bursting until the photographer was satisfied.

“But the weeks dragged on and bills were piling up, Dean was too proud to ask his father for help so I looked through the paper and found an ad looking for a hand model.”

Rio makes a disbelieving voice in the back of his throat like he can’t believe that’s an actual job and so she shoves her hand palm up onto his thigh for inspection. He makes a show of looking it all over, up and down each finger and circling her much smaller wrist and she has to bite down a laugh though a small smile breaks through. But she’s trying to prove her point that years of moisturizing and regular manicures have kept her hands soft and youthful even twenty years later. 

She doesn’t pull back from his grasp after he’s done and Rio doesn’t let go, it crosses her mind that this is the first time they actually hold hands.

“I showed up to the audition and was immediately told that the position had been filled.” She remembers standing in front of the totally uninterested receptionist on the brink of tears mostly from frustration about what she was going to do, Annie and her mother were about two days away from losing power and her and Dean were probably looking at ketchup and saltine sandwich dinners for the foreseeable future. “I was about to leave until a man stopped me and offered me a job to pose for some as he put it ‘decreet photos’.” 

All Rio has to do is huff a deep breath through his nose and she can hear the long suffering  _ “Ma”  _ on the tip of his tongue so before he can start with the lecture about being naive and stranger danger like she’s five years old Beth just keeps talking.

“Before you start I did ask around to make sure he was legit and so the next day I was shoved into a corset and told to move this way and that for a couple hours. After everything was done with I walked away with a check for two grand.”

“So why the water works darlin’?”She purses her lips at his question because she’d definitely not cried when he’d whipped out the magazine, she’ll admit there might have been a slight mistiness in her vision but no crying.

“I-I don’t really know myself maybe it just brought back a lot of memories. For months afterward I was terrified that someone would recognize me or that I’d have to take the photographer up on his offer of taking more revealing photos for more money, and battled with my own embarrassment at having taken those pictures. But the money got us through another month and Dean finally sold a car so eventually it became a distant memory.”

“Why the embarrassment mami? You’ve done much worse things for money...I should know.” His tone is light and teasing as memories come back of robbing the Fine and Frugal, getting away with a half million of Rio’s money, and him surprising her at the very counter their sitting at now.

“I guess you could call it the one and only youthful rebellious thing I did. My little secret between me, the photographer, and the thousands...well more like hundreds of men and women who bought the magazine.” She leans over and nudges his shoulder. “Oh and now you too...perv.”

He throws his head back and laughs at her joking accusation, it feels amazing to see him so happy and relaxed.

“Aww ma that’s rich coming from you because I read some of the nasty stuff in your interview.” He points down to the very last question and she bends over particularly in his lap to see it.

_ Q: One last question, if you could please describe your idea of a perfect date? Please don’t spare the dirty details. _

_ Beth: That’s the thing if I gave you all the dirty details it’d take all the mystery and fun out! But I’ll try and be generous...for the readers. First he shows up to my door and escorts me to his car being the perfect gentleman the entire time, flowers aren’t required but they’re a definite plus. Then he takes me to some hole in the wall Italian place or maybe french, I just love how a romantic language rolls off the tongue. During the meal it’s all teasing with flirting back and forth eventually I might toe off my heel and run my foot along his leg inching closer and closer to his inseam, probably the funniest part would be watching his expression because I’ll have him convinced I’m such a good girl who would never do anything so daring. _

_ Q cont’d: Please!?! Don’t leave us hanging how does the night end? _

_ Beth: Well after a sinfully rich dessert, I’d probably have him drive me home with the expectation that he would be the perfect gentleman the entire way but I’ll keep teasing him pushing right to the edge and… _

_ Q cont’d: AND? _

_ Beth: At the end of the night we’ll eventually fall into bed together or against the bedroom door maybe even the floor I’m not too picky. If he does a particularly good job I’ll make him my signature crepes in the morning. _

Her eyes almost roll out of her head and she looks up into his amused expression though there's something darker now with their new position, his teeth working his lower lip. “Sorry to ruin the fantasy but those answers are wildly embellished I did not in fact…” She points to an earlier question. “‘ _ Fantasize about my high school principal taking me over his knee in front of the whole school.’  _ My principal’s name was Mrs. Hertz and she was 65 years old.”

“Awe ma why you gotta be such a buzzkill.” He grumbles before swinging an arm around her waist and pulling her closer like it’s the most natural thing in the world funnily enough she doesn’t want to pull away. “But don’t worry we’ll play out the principal thing later.”

He’s still teasing and is able to maneuver away when she tries to pinch his side for the comment but the idea does spark a little  _ huh!?  _ moment in her mind that she’ll file away for later.

“Yes well now you know so if you don’t have any business to discuss.” She leaves it there getting up and moving to resume her washing up, she can feel him just a hair's breadth behind her. 

“Oh but this is about business mama. Mostly bout how you owe me for the magazines.” He whispers in her ear so low and husky that it takes a moment to register. 

She spins around with an  _ ‘excuse me’ _ that she has to swallow because he is very  _ very _ close. They’re chest to chest and the late afternoon sun is streaming in making his skin even more golden. It’s almost the complete opposite of the bar bathroom except for the sink but the energy is the same but she can’t it get to her they’re partners now no matter how intoxicating his sent is at this very moment.

“What are you talking about that thing must have cost you at most a buck!”

“Nah you didn’t hear me right darlin. I said  _ magazines _ as in plural apparently you’re little act of rebellion was a limited edition issue and the publisher went under not long after.” His hand come up to squeeze her hips and then down to caress her ass. “Making it an extremely sought after collectors item. The old lady who sold it to me at the yard sale didn’t know it’s value but the sellers on ebay sure did.”

She leans back at that too curious to let it slide, “Wait...am I hearing you right? Rio did you buy all the magazines you could find.”

He’s avoiding her questioning look and she can see so much of Marcus in him right now, a little kid being called out. She should push it get some revenge for all the teasing earlier but she’s mostly surprised by his actions. It’s not exactly boyfriend doting on his girlfriend level but it’s also far from dirty bar bathroom quickie.

“Figured it was better to keep them out of common hands. No need for anyone else to see the Boss Bitch like that.”  _ except me. _ She can sense it just on the tip of his tongue and she smiles up at him because even if he can’t say the words just yet it’s alright because maybe one day she’ll be ready to hear them. 

For now it’s just this moment between them.

“You haven’t explained  _ how  _ exactly I’m supposed to pay you back.” She fiddles with the top button of his long sleeve focusing on the subtle twitches of his tattoo. “Because I’m a tiny bit short on cash.”

Both of them know it’s an obvious lie they’re making money hand over fist down at the dealership, hell she could probably see a few of the holes she and the girls dug if she turns back around. But from the way his fingers dig into her soft flesh and the sly smirk on his face he’s willing to play along. 

“Oh really...well I guess we can put you on some sort of payment plan.” He cranes his head down and for a moment she almost thinks he’ll kiss her but instead veers off to the crook of her neck and she has to bite down a laugh as his beard scruff tickles her. “Or we could find a... _ different  _ sort of exchange.”

“An exchange hmm? And what would a big tough gang leader want from some suburban mom?”

“I was thinkin’ maybe we could take a few more pictures, try a few more positions with a lot less clothes.” Rio’s started to rock their bodies back and forth now in a motion that inches them closer towards her bedroom. “I’m quite particular to the one with you on your knees in nothing but that silk sheet.”

“I remember that one, the fabric kept slipping through my fingers and pooling around my thighs.” Beth clucks her tongue as Rio lets out a groan halfway between pain and pleasure. “I guess I’d be open to taking a few photos...on one condition.”

“Oh yeah what’s that mama?” Rio asks but she’s doubtful he’s really paying attention, more focused tugging the buttons on her shirt loose(how are half of them already undone?!).

“I think the theme  _ ‘Cops and Robbers’  _ would be really cu-” She can’t even finish her cheesy joke as Rio lets out a long suffering sigh and plants his lips against hers.

For the rest of the day and into the night there’s a lot less talking. It’s not until several hours later that Rio remembers to snap a picture of Elizabeth, sleeping curled up against his chest with wild bedhead and just the smallest bit of drool on the corner of her mouth.

It’s his favorite one.

  
  


The end

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I can't believe I promised I was gonna have this one out soon and then bam! one month passes. Hopefully me putting out this plus a one shot will get you guys to forgive me. I just was unsure how to end this and frankly it came out way fluffier than anticipated. I also semi-screwed with canon but I'am beyond the point of caring. Please forgive any mistakes I didn't do as through an edit as I wanted again really need to work on that whole getting a beta business.
> 
> Kudo, share, and comments are much appreciated. <3

**Author's Note:**

> This idea would not let me go until I wrote it all out and the next and final chapter is almost done. I really have to get a beta soon if only so the jokes I write in the note of google docs get seen by people other than me...oh yeah and also so I don't seem so stupid. So here are some of the I guess easter eggs I put in there.  
1\. I put a John Mulaney joke in  
2\. Yes I put an otaku in don't judge me!  
3\. The magazine is called 'Oh La La' and it's from Back to the Future 2.  
4\. The main pic of Beth is actually inspired from a photo of Christina Hendricks but I can't find the source trust me the photo is smoking. Thought it was from Neon Demons which is a film Christina was in but it's not. Also don't watch Neon Demons unless you want to be super bored and wonder why you're watching a bunch of beautiful people with no personalities. Thankfully Christina is only in like two minutes of it and so is Keanu Reeves but sadly they share zero scenes.
> 
> Also I'm still working on Pony this is just a little side thing.


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